Russia wants strike drone

Moscow, April 2 (IANS) Russia has issued a technical specification for development of a strike unmanned air vehicle (UAV), Izvestia daily said Monday quoting a source.

Tranzas company will build the UAV’s on-board electronics as well as its navigation and control systems. The airframe, which will weigh about five tonnes, will be produced by the Kazan-based Sokol design bureau, reported RIA Novosti.

The new aircraft will have a modular structure, the source said, and will be able to carry various types of equipment and armament.

Russia’s defense ministry sealed contracts worth an estimated 3 billion rubles ($101.9 million) with Tranzas and Sokol in October 2011 for research work into creation of strike and reconnaissance UAVs.

In late March, Russian Air Force commander-in-chief Col. Gen. Alexander Zelin, told Moscovsky Komsomolets tabloid that strike drones will enter service before 2020. He did not specify how many drones will be acquired.

The US has relied heavily on UAVs, including the Predator system, to carry out missile attacks on insurgents in the Afghanistan-Pakistan border area.